Drinking fountain



June 7, 1949. C, G, SHEPHERD I 2,472,387

' DRINKING FOUNTAIN Filed July 24, 1946 l g Y l l l I A 1 ron/Vey.

Patented June 7, 1949 UNI T ED STAT E S PATENT OFFICE DRINKING,FOUNTAIN.v

Clarence G. Shepherd, Fontana, Calif;

ApplicationJuly 24, 1946, Serial No. 685,964

4 Glaims.

drawing, whichforms a part of this specification andin which:

Fig.'v 1.is.a,1ongitudinal section of my invention witl'rthedrinkingreceptaclen detached therefrom andthef water. supply valve.automatically closed.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section ofmy inventionI showing. thev watersupply valve open and the drinkingv receptacle partly lled with water.

Fig. 3 is a` longitudinal section of my inventionishowing the drinkingreceptacle lled with water and the. water supply valve automatically.'

closed.

Fig. Li-isa longitudinal section of a modification of. my,r inventionwith thev drinking receptacle detached from the water-supply valve andsaid valve-.closed 5'.is,a longitudinal section of the modification ofmy invention shown in Fig. 4, with the watersupply valve openedgby theweight of the drinking, receptacle and water partly filling the same(not-shown).

Eig. 6 isalongitudinal section ofthe modicationgofmy, invention shown inFigs. 4 and 5, with the water-supply valve closed by the weight ofthewater completelyfilling the drinking receptacle-` (not shown).

Referring more. particularly to the drawing, inrwhichl correspondingparts are designated by thesame reference numeralsin allof the figures,:ny-invention, as shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, includes awater-supply valve` I, a drinking receptacle. 2, and valve-opening means3 for opening said valve until said drinking receptacle islcompletely.lled with water, the supply of which is automatically controlled by saidvalve.

The valve I is located in the upper end of a barrel14,.while thevalve-opening means 3 is located partly in said barrel and partly in ascrew plug 5 threaded in the lower end of said barrel, as at 6. Theupper end of the barrel is formed with a hollow male coupling member 'Iwhich. externally threaded, as at 8, which coupling` is screw. seated inar threaded female coupling-of a waterpipe or hydrant (notshown). Thevalve I comprises a horizontal seat 9, formed in the upper end of thebarrel 4, and a weighted valve-closing member I0 formed with an externalhorizontal base flange II, which rests upon said seat for closing saidvalve, there being an inverted conical valve spring I2, located in thehollow coupling member 1, with the upper end of said spring bearingagainst` a pin I3 driven through the upper end of said coupling member,and withthe lower end of said spring extending over the valve closingmember Ii! against its base flange II and normally holding said valveclosing member upon its seat 9 and the valve I closed.

The valve-opening m'eans 3 includes a depending weighted valve stem I4,formed on its lower end with a cam-engaging head I5, a spring plungerrod I6 formed with a cam I'I on its upper end and a hook I8 on its lowerend, and a spring I9, surrounding said plunger, with the lower end ofsaid spring extending into a central recess 20 and the upper end of theplug 5 and bearing against the lower end wall of said recess, and withthe upper end of said spring bearing against a collar 2l on the upperportion of the plunger rod I6.

The dependingv valve stem I4 extends downwardly from the valve-closingmember I0 Ithrough the opening22` surrounded by the valve seat 9, whichopening is of suiiiciently larger diameter than the stem I4 to .permitsaid stem to be swung to one side at an angle, with one side or" thebase ange II of the Valve-closing member I0 resting upon the seat 9, sothat the opposite side of 'said base flange will be-raised abovesaidseat andthe valve I will be opened suiciently to permit water to passdownwardly from the coupling 'I through the seat opening 22 into` thebarrel 4. The plunger rod I6 extends upwardly centrally into the barrel4 through a central bore 23 and the recess 20 in the plug 5, said boreextending upwardly in said plug fromthe lower end thereof to the lowerend of said recess 20. The plunger rod I6 is bent in serpentine formfroma point immediately above the spring engaging collar 2|, formingfirst a depressed portion 24, then a raisedv portion, which is the camI'I, above saiddepressed portion, and then a depressed portion 25,abovesaid cam, which depressed portion terminates in an upward extension 26.

T he drinking receptacle 2 may be of semispherical form, anda suspensionrod 2l is secured at the lower end Vin a boss 28 formed on the innerside of the bottom wall of said receptacle at the lowerrnostpointthereof, which rod extends upwardlyV through sad receptacle and isformed with a.y hook 29 onits upper. end above said receptacle, whichhook engagesthe hook I8 onthe lower` end vof suspending said receptaclefrom the lower end of said plunger rod.

the plunger rod I6 for detachably The operation of my invention as abovedescribed is as follows:

With the drinking receptacle 2 detached from the plunger rod I6, bydisengagement of the receptacle hook 29 from the plunger rod hook I8,said plunger rod is elevated to its uppermost position by the spring I9engaging the collar 2I on said plunger rod, in which position of theplunger rod the valve stem cam-engaging head I5 rests within thedepressed portion 24 of the plunger rod I6 below the cam Il and theValve I is closed, with its base flange II resting upon the valve seat 9and shutting off the supply of Water to the barrel 4, as shown in Fig.1, from a pipe or hydrant, to which the coupling member 'I is coupled.

When the drinking receptacle 2 is attached to the lower end of theplunger rod I6, by engaging the receptacle hook 29 with the plunger rodhook i8, the weight of said receptacle draws the plunger rod i5 and thecam Il down against the tension of the spring i9 until the cam I'Iengages the valve stem cam-engaging head I 5 and swings the valve stemI4 and valve closing member Il at an angle with one side of the baseIiange I I of said valve-closing member resting upon the valve seat 9and the opposite side of said base flange raised above said seat andopening the valve I, whereupon water from the supply pipe or hydrant, towhich the coupling 'I is coupled, enters said coupling and passesthrough the valve opening 22 into the barrel 4, and from said barrel thewater pass-es through the recess 2l) and the bore 23 in the plug 5 anddrops into the drinking receptacle 2, as shown in Fig. 2.

When the water dropped from the barrel 4 into the drinking receptaclells said receptacle, the weight of said water-filled receptacle drawsthe plunger rod i6 down to its .lowermost position against the tensionof the spring I9, whereupon the cam il passes below the valve-stemcarnengaging head i5 and said head swings into the upper depressedportion 25 of the plunger rod I6, until the weighted valve stem I4 andthe Valve closing member I9 assume their normal vertical positioncoaxial with the barrel 4, with the base flange i! of said valve closingmember I resting completely upon the valve seat 9, thus closing thevalve i and shutting oi the supply of water to the barrel 4 and fromsaid barrel to the drinking receptacle as shown in Fig. 3.

When water in the drinking receptacle 2, as shown in Fig. 3, is drunk bypoultry or domestic anirfifds down to a predetermined level in saidreceptacle, as iilustrated in Fig. 2 for example, the power of thespring I9 overcomes the weight of the receptacle 2 and the watertherein, and said spring elevates the plunger rod I6 and said receptacleto a point where the cam I'I engages the Valve-stem cam-engaging head Iand swings the valve stem i4 and the valve closing member I9 to aninclined position and opens the valve I, whereupon water passes from thecoupling 1 through the Valve-seat opening 22 into the barrel 4, and fromsaid barrel through the bore 23 around the plunger rod I6 into thedrinking receptacle 2, until said receptacle is again filled and thevalve I is closed as hereinbefore described, and the above describedoperation is automatically repeated to maintain a constant supply offresh water in said drinking receptacle 2.

In the modification of my invention as shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6 theconstruction is the same as that shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive,except that the plunger rod I6, spring I9, spring recess 20 andwater-outlet bore 23 are located at one side of the valve-stem I4 andcenter of the barrel 4, and a cam 39, secured on the upper end of theplunger rod I6, is substituted for the cam Il and depressed portions 24and 25 on the upper portion of said plunger rod, which cam 30 is engagedby the upper end of the spring I9. Said cam 30 is of substantially pearshape, converging upwardly and downwardly from its largest diameter, asindicated at 3 I, for engaging the valve stem head I5 and opening thevalve I, as the plunger rod I6 is moved up or down, respectively, by thespring I9 and the weight of the drinking receptacle 2 and the watertherein, for maintaining a constant supply of fresh water to saidreceptacle, in the manner hereinbefore described in the operation of myinvention as shown in Figs. l to 3, inclusive.

I claim:

1. A drinking fountain including a barrel constructed and arranged to beconnected to a source of water supply, a valve having a horizontal seat,a depending stem and a weight constituting an enlargement at the lowerend of the stem and forming a cam-engaging head, a plunger rod formedwith a hook on its lower end and a cam on its upper end, a springengaging a part on said plunger rod, a drinking receptacle constructedwith a hook for engaging said plunger-rod hook and suspending saidreceptacle from said plunger rod, the weight of said receptacle beingsuch as to draw down said plunger rod against said spring to cause saidcam to engage and tip said valve stem head and valve tol open said valveto admit water through said barrel to said drinking receptacle, untilsaid receptacle is lled with water, and said spring being of such powerto raise said plunger rod and drinking receptacle, when a predeterminedamount of water is drunk from said filled receptacle, to cause said camto engage said valve stem to open said valve and admit water throughsaid barrel to fill said drinking receptacle.

2. A drinking fountain as characterized in claim 1 in which a springnormally maintains the valve upon its seat in closed position.

3. A drinking fountain as characterized in claim 1 in which a plug,provided with a Water outlet bore, is threaded in the lower end of thebarrel, through which bore the plunger rod extends and water flows fromthe barrel into the drinking receptacle.

4. A drinking fountain as characterized in claim l, in which a plug isthreaded in the lower end of the barrel, said barrel being provided witha recess and a water outlet bore leading from said recess, in whichrecess rests the lower end of the spring and through which recess andbore the plunger rod extends and water ilows from the barrel into thedrinking receptacle.

CLARENCE G. SHEPHERD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 186,094 Allen Jan. 9, 18771,172,584 Conrad Feb. 22, 1916 2,336,120 Null Dec. 7, 1943

